Various Tribes of the Human Race

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THE ILLUSTRATED MAGAZINE OF ART.

envious of things which had no real existence. For this class
of travellers, a Swiss hostelry, an English inn, an American
farm-house has a more brilliant appearance, and is liked a
great deal better ; it is more in harmony with their thoughts
and feelings, more consonant to their predilections, being
decidedly more comfortable.

These old palaces belong to the past. They ar<* not things
to be swept and garnished, and made modern. In their
solemnity and silence they are the monuments of the ancient
glory of the city, of the art of those who reared their stately
piles, of the grandeur of those who dwelt within their walls.
Attempts have here and there been made to adapt the antique
splendour of the mansions to the usages of modern opulence,
and huge has been the failure of the result. Patched, and
painted, and " done-up," the grandeur departs for ever, the
spell is broken, the charm is gone. Suppose a hardy speculator
of that genus, with which our age abounds, should promise to
restore the Ca'Dora, the palaces of the Foscari, Contarini, Pisani,
Grimani, Manin, Sagredo, Yendramin, and others less illus-
trious ; imagine all these monuments of the old time modified
and altered, and re- arranged according to modern notions
and the conventionalities of life in the nineteenth century—
' what would be the result r— " a thing of shreds and patches," a
hybrid, neither ancient nor modern, as incongruous and out of
place as harlequin's hat on the head of Augustus.

Venice derives no interest from classic association. It has

an antiquity of its own. Of all modern things it is the oldest
— of ancient things the youngest born. He who boasted that
the grass grew not where his horse had trod, chased the Vene-
tian people into glory and renown. Driven before Alaric to
take shelter in the small islands of the Venetian Gulf, they,
" Like the water fowl,
Built their nests among the ocean wave,"
They had to struggle hard, for many difficulties surrounded
them ; their commerce was opposed by pirates, but they grew
with their danger, and Venice bid defiance, not only to the
pirate, but also to the mighty son of the mightier Charlemagne.
"When the hermit from the East preached the crusade, it aug-
mented the wealth, the commerce, and the possessions of
Venice, and the maritime importance of the city was felt and
recognised. Venice in the fifteenth century was the richest
and most magnificent city of Europe ; the nobles of the city
surpassed the state of the greatest monarch beyond the Alps ;
and their palaces of Pisani, Ca' Dora, and the rest, are the
mementoes of that period. How the city fell at last beneath
the power of Napoleon, it is unnecessary here to relate. She

" In an ark
Had floated down, amidst a thousand wrecks
Uninjured, from the Old World to the New."
There are two principal portions of the city, each one made
up of several small islands, and each entirely cut off from the
other except at the Bialto.

VARIOUS TRIBES OF THE HUMAN RACE.

We herewith take occasion to present the reader with a few
pictorial representations of men; — men not celebrated as
individuals for any peculiar virtue or startling vice, but whose
claim to our editorial attention, and to the reader's best con-
sideration, is founded on the truthful representation of the
races to which they belong.

Need we stop to indicate the races or nations to which
the six interesting individuals represented in our first illus-
tration (p. 224) appertain ? Perhaps it is scarcely necessary ;
yet, for fear of accidents, we will do so, beginning with
the most important ^looking) personage in the united happy
family. There he is in the centre of our picture ; standing
proudly erect, as a celestial should, looking with great
complacency on his own figure— but scorning to deign a
glance at those around him. A very fitting exposition of
the idea John Chinaman entertains of himself is given by
our picture. He is a man one would object to buy at his own '
price; and his long flag- ornamented spear looks sufficiently
formidable. Nevertheless, John Chinaman is no great soldier-
nay, if the truth be told, he is somewhat of a coward ; had he
read our own u Hudibras " he could not have entertained notions
more discreet about " running away, that he may fight another
day." Placed in the centre of our group, amidst so many
warlike neighbours, the brother of the moon must be ill at his
ease. Immediately on the right (his right we mean, not the
reader's) is his warlike neighbour, the Japanese, whom we
mio-ht recognise anywhere by his open vest and petticoats, of
which latter we may say more on a future occasion.

Nothing offends a Japanese so much as a comparison
between him and the Chinese. "Theonlv time," says Dr.
Ainslie, " I ever saw a Japanese forget his usual politeness
was on an occasion of this kind. Inadvertently I happened to
draw a comparison between him and a Chinese, when he knit
his brows, looked sternly at me, and laid his hand upon his
sword." Nor is this superiority assumed without justice.
The Japanese have ever known how to protect their hearths
and homes against all invaders. The last serious attempt on
their liberties was made by the grandson of Genghis Khan,
who, after a strenuous effort, was utterly defeated.

Squatting at the feet of the Japanese, we have the muck-
running Malay. On the extreme left of the picture we have
another spear -bearing gentleman, who is an Arab, and behind
him a rather spruce-looking Oriental, in high cap and shawl-

pattern dressing-gown. This latter individual is the greatest
rogue of the party, and having stated thus much, we need
scarcely say he is* a Persian. Like the other individuals of
our group, the Persian is not a certain individual Persian —
he is any Persian you like, kind reader — but being the only
Persian in our wood-cut, he is the greatest rogue there.

Of the Persians, we shall merely inform the reader that they
are a mixed race ; that their ''native country is known to them
by the name of Iran ; that they are cruel, treacherous, false,
possessing a fine language, and tolerably poetical literature ;
but their historical records are so completely lost, that all
knowledge of their former struggles with classic Greece has
vanished. The earliest and most authentic account of the
manners and customs of the Persians is to be found in
Herodotus.*

We must now bid adieu to the native of Japan, and
devote a few words to his pictorial — nay, almost his geo-
graphical neighbour, the Malay. It is rather a curious
circumstance that naturalists are at a loss to account for, or
classify, the Malay. If we are to believe in the historical
records of that people, the Malays originally came from the
district of Palembang, in the interior of Sumatra, and dis-
tributed themselves, about the end of the twelfth century,
over various littoral regions of neighbouring lands. Con-
nected with this history, it may be mentioned as not a little
singular that the centre of Sumatra has a Malay population to
this day, and is theonlv inland spot thus circumstanced. The
Malays have always been bold, resolute mariners, and in all
their wanderings have never penetrated far inland. They are
an impetuous, daring race, prone to anger, sullen and im-
placable. Their revenge knows no bounds, their dissimulation
is equal to their revenge. A Malay, once offended, is im-
placable. He may appear to forgive, but only awaits a
favourable occasion. So soon as this occasion presents itself,
he maddens his intellects by a dose of opium, and breaking
loose, with creese or crooked dagger in hand, stabs all who
oppose his progress — calling out all the time, " amok, amok"
which means, " kill, kill." In. every mental characteristic,
the Malay is the very antipodes of the Hindoo. Until 1276,
the Malays were pagans, or adopted some form of Hindoo

* For a translation of this part of Herodotus, see the Histo-
rical Educator, Vol. I., pp. lol— 7.

THE ILLUSTRATED MAGAZINE OF ART.

223

idolatry ; they then adopted the tenets of Islam, which is at
present the universal faith.

We have little to say about the Chinese beyond what the
reader knows of him already. China, indeed, has ceased for
some time to be that terra incognita it was formerly repre-
sented. Various travellers have within the last ten years
penetrated into the celestial regions, and made notes of what
they saw. Amongst all these recent books of Chinese travels,
that of Mr. Fortune, the horticulturist, is one of the most
instructive and interesting. We have spoken of the cowardice
of the Chinese, a quality which is amusingly illustrated by
Mr. Fortune, who very. amusingly relates how — though ill of
fever at the timer— he succeeded in beating off two Chinese
pirate ships with a double-barrelled fowling-piece. The
movement now going on in China will probably work a mighty
change in the destiny of this populous empire.

Last of all comes the noble Arab, remarkable as being of
the race whence sprung the soldier prophet Mohammed. The
Arab is amongst the finest specimens of Caucasian man, and
the wonderful success of the race under the first Caliphs is
unprecedented. To the Saracen Arabs of Spain we are
indebted for the introduction of algebra to Europe, for the
method of measuring angles by sines instead of the chords of
arcs, for the introduction of sugar, and of a fine description of
pottery,* with numerous arts and sciences which would occupy
whole pages in the mere enumeration. We ha\e neither time
nor space for this, but must take leave of our interesting
group.

Amongst- all the figures represented in our second wood-
cut (p. 225), that on the extreme left of the picture claims
pre-eminence. Not only on account of actual changes now
taking place, and the Eastern political movement, is the
Turk interesting to us, but for many other reasons. Viewed
without prejudice, he is a very noble fellow, mentally and
corporeally. His physiognomy is scarcely inferior in beauty
to the Hellenic type, from which, however, it differs in many
essential respects. Nevertheless, according to many natu-
ralists, the Turk is not originally sprung from a Caucasian
race ; and even Cuvier, who concedes to him this privileged
honour, ranges the Turks' forefathers amongst the very ugliest
of that race, the Scythian and Tartar branch. Why, then, it
may be inquired, are the modern Turks so handsome as a
general rule ? The only reason that can or need be assigned,
is the intermarriage of their ancestors with a race more
favoured by nature than their own. This cause having been
in operation for centuries, has no doubt mainly contributed to
the improvement of which we speak, and the result is, that
the inodern Ottoman now possesses more than half the cha-
racteristics of the Caucasian race. A still more striking
instance of the gradual change in the aspect of a race by
intermarriage is recognisable in the isolated valley of Cash-
mere. The beauty of the inhabitants of this valley is also
celebrated. The natives are now very fair, although originally
of Hindoo stock. This fair complexion, and, in short, all the
difference between a Hindoo of the valleys and a Cashmerian,
is attributable to intermarriage with Circassian girls.

The original seat of the Turkish race is the Altai moun-
tains, situated in the very centre of Asia. The race of
that people was servile, being amongst the most despised
of the slaves of the Khan of the Geougen. Their appointed
task was the extraction of metals from their ores and the
manufacture of arms — a dangerous profession for slaves to
be taught. At length a leader arose amongst the Turks ;
his name was Bertezena. He led them against the neigh-
bouring tribes and to victory. Having signalised his prowess
by feats of arms, Bertezena presumed to ask in marriage
the daughter of the. Khan, when the father contemptuously
rejected him. The Turkish leader thereupon forthwith allied
himself with a princess of China, and having almost ex-
tirpated the tribes of the Khan of Geougen in battle, esta-
blished in its place the more powerful empire of the Turks.
From this time the conquests of the Turks were rapid and

* The " Majolica ware."

extensive. Pressing on westward, they at length were brought
into collision with the Eastern empire of Byzantium, already
tottering to its fall. At length, in 1453, the Eastern empire
fell, that of the Ottoman taking its place. The event, it will
be seen, happened exactly 400 years ago, and the. Russians
having been long accustomed to predict the downfall of Turk-
ish domination at the expiration of 400 years, a peculiar sig-
nificance was imparted to the year 1853.

The Turks, from being originally idolaters, espoused, at a
very early period of their career, the tenets of Islam, as the
head of the orthodox or Sunnite division, of which they are
universally recognised. Persia, as most likely the reader is
aware, belongs to the opposed or Shuite sect of Mohammedans ;
and for this reason the feeling between Persian and Turk is
none of the most friendly. Certain modem journalists affect
to marvel at the circumstance that Persia should appear to
have thought of taking the field against her co-religionist,
forgetting that, in proportion as the distinction between
sects is more slight, so frequently, if not invariably, is the
mutual antagonism more intense. In addition to mere
doctrinal points of difference, the Turk and the Persian are
so essentially different in their whole moral constitution, that
very little community of feeling could be expected to exist
between them. Veracity is no less a characteristic of the
Osmanli than falsehood of the Persian. The Turk's plighted
word is never broken — that of the Persian is seldom kept.
The Turk is thoughtful, impassive, sedate : the Persian is
noisy and vivacious. To sum up all, the Turk is a thorough
gentleman from toe to turban, and the Persian every inch of
him a scamp.

Standing next to the Turk in our illustration is an individual
with cloak hanging on one shoulder and peculiar brimless hat.
This individual is a Magyar or Hungarian. True to his prin-
ciples of faithful delineation, our artist has represented the
Magyar with the peculiar nose, so characteristic of his race,
that it has passed into the proverbial terms of Hungarian nose.
The peculiarity consists in a sort of aquiline stumpiness not
altogether agreeable, especially in the fair sex. The present
Magyar or Hungarian race of men has sadly puzzled the
ethnologist. What region they came from, or who they were,
no person seems to know. Cuvier ranges them under the
Scythian or Tartar group of Caucasians, along with Turks,
Fins, and Parthians ; but this is by no means certain. The
Magyars themselves are fond of tracing their origin to the
Huns, and are so proud of Attila, their assumed progenitor, that
the picture of that arch destroyer is to be seen in the house of
almost every Hungarian. Nevertheless, there seems to be no
just reason for crediting this parentage. The Magyar language
is also involved in great mystery as to its origin and congeners,
but no difference of sentiment exists as to its piowers or
expressiveness. Anterior to the year 1828, all Hungarian
legal documents were drawn up in Latin, which also was the
language of polite conversation amongst the better classes.
Since that period the Magyar or Hungarian language has been
introduced into courts of law, and has been cultivated by all
classes as the literary exponent of the nation. This sudden
development of the native language, under the auspices
of Kissfaldy and other Hungarian poets, was but one of
many indications betokening reviving nationality. Hungary,
although absorbed, so to speak, in the fabric of the vast
Austrian empire, had still a government — a constitutional
government of her own, the enactments of which were ever
clashing with those of the imperial po wer. The results of this
clashing between adverse interests we have already seen in the
political commotions of 1848-9. Recently, Hungary has been
completely absorbed (at least by decree) into the Austrian
empire.

In appearance, the Magyar is still half oriental ; in tempe-
rament, he offers certain points of comparison with ourselves,
being a sort of impetuous, military Anglo-Saxon, fond of con-
stitutional government, prone to litigation, and preferring the
rough enjoyment of independence to any reliance on the
favours of a government ; in which latter* respect he presents
salient points of contrast to his neighbour the German, who,

224

THE ILLUSTRATED MAGAZINE OF ART.

with all his intellectual pre-eminence, is never happy except he . commented upon, as the reader will, perhaps, remember, by
fills some office under a government and enjoys a high-sounding Miss Pardoe, in her book, entitled « The City of the Mazvar "
name. Reyerting.to the subject of the Magyar language, its Brave Magyar, we must bid you now farewell, and direct our

MALAY, JAPANESE, CHINESE, PERSIANS, ABAB.

moat striking phonetic quality is the preponderance of the attention to your interesting right-hand neighbour, that pretty
letter K. This quality has been remarked by all strangers Greek girl. As we point to the natives of Georgia and Cir-
who have heard it spoken, and has been rather amusingly cassia for our beau ideal of corporeal beauty ; so, when the

THE ILLUSTRATED MAGAZINE OF ART,

225

extreme of intellectual expression is to be portrayed, do we questions, which we, in few words, will strive to answer. The

eign or figure to ourselves the classic models of Greece. most ancient histories and traditions of classic Greece testify

And who were and are those Greeks ? — that people who to the mixture of races, out of which the Greeks of antiquity

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LAPLANDER, TYHOLESE, COSSACK, GREEK GIRL, HUNGARIAN, TURK.

furnished models for the immortal chisel of Phidias and were consolidated. Throughout the Greeian continent and
Praxiteles ? Whence came they ? Were they the prototype archipelago structures are still to be seen, termed " Cyclopean,"
of the Greeks of the present day ? AU these are interesting very different to the beautiful temples hereafter destined to

226

THE ILLUSTRATED MAGAZINE OF ART.

this beauty still remains to the present clay. The Greek
countenance presents a beautiful contour of skull and face,
dark flowing hair, white skin, slightly tinged with olive or
brown ; large eyes, straight nose, falling directly, with only a
slight depression between the eyes. Nevertheless, though
slight, there is a depression ; and in this respect the Grecian
differs from the Turkish ountenance, which, instead of a
depression between nose and forehead, is marked in that spot
with a slight elevation There is something strange in the
contemplation of that persistency of form, features, and lan-
guage, which characterises Greece and its inhabitants. Not-
withstanding a certain deterioration of aspect, traceable to
the effect of conquest and prolonged slavery, the modern
Greeks are still very handsome, and the style of their beauty
is as of old — a proposition rendered sufficiently evident by a
comparison of living specimens with antique statues. As to the
modern Greek language, now called the Romaic, it is not more
different from classic Greek than modern English is different
from the language of Chaucer. In deference to a certain
modern tendency, the nature of which it would be impos-
sible to explain, all the multifarious inflexions of ancient
Greek have vanished from the Romaic, and tenses are formed
by the help of auxiliaries, instead of by varying terminations ;
nevertheless, the two languages must be pronounced the
same ; indeed, the modern literati of Greece affect to write in
the classic language, which still being generally taught in the
native schools, the process of regeneration proceeds. Such,
then, is the persistency of the Greek language : where is the
Latin gone ? Made of sterner stuff, apparently, than the Greek,
it is now everywhere a dead language.

Returning io our little Greek damsel, it is a subject of
regret with us that the Hungarian oh the one side, and the
Tyrolese on the other, do hot permit her to come further
towards us. Were she more visible, her garb would be seen
to be highly picturesque. Every rose, however, the proverb
says, has a thorn; and if our little Greek were nearer, we
might perhaps discover her io possess larger feet than accord
with our notions of feminine beauty. If the truth must be
told, Greek ladies have not, arid never appear to have had,
little feet ; nor is a high forehead one of their characteristics.
The quality, however, of high forehead in ladies was not
approved of by classic nations, and we happen to be acquainted
with some moderns who participate in the sentiment. In
point of fact, a high forehead is thought to correspond with
strong-mindedness, and some people are so perverse that they
cannot like " strong-minded women."

Whatever may be our regrets at the retiring shyness of the
fair Greek, we tender our best thanks to the Cossack gentle-
man with long lance for keeping himself in the background.
Truly his race is no favourite of" ours, neither in appearance
nor in manners. Who has not heard of the Cossack ? Who
has not read of the harassing style of his military attacks —
ever hanging on the rear of a discomfited enemy, murdering
the wounded, arid relentlessly picking off stragglers } Who
has not been taught to regard this irregular cavalry as art
integral arid very important portion of the Russian army?
Yet the Cossacks have not always owned allegiance to that
mighty power. Originally they sprang from the greatest
enemies of Russia, the Tartars, and subsequently they did
good duty against Russia under the Poles. The Cossacks are
only a small tribe, scarcely numbering 500,000 in all ; never-
theless, every adult male being a soldier, their military force
is great, an army of 100,000 at least being ever at the disposal
of Russia. The origin of the Cossacks as a consolidated body
is modern. They appear to have arisen out of some Tartar
tribes, who intermarried with native Russians, gipsies, and
Kalmucs ; and the name Cossack seems to be derived from the
Tartar word Kasack, or Kasak, meaning " light horseman."
For a long time the race was known by the appellation
Tsherkassi or Circassians, and even now their chief town is
called Tsherkask. Nevertheless, they have little enough of
Circassian beauty ; their form and countenance, and general
aspect, being far more indicative of the Mongol. This people
was not known by the appellation Cossack until about the

spring up in that land of genius. The Cyclopean structures
possess somewhat the characteristics of our own Druiaical
monuments, being composed of enormous stones rudely aggre-
gated without mortar. By whom — by what race were these
structures raised ? That is a mystery t but whatever the race,
it existed in Greece anterior to the IVlasgic, of which the
Celtic and the Latin were also branches. We all know that the
Romans traced their origin to the heroes of Troy ; so, in like
manner, do the Celts also ; but more indirectly did the Greeks ;
for call them Trojans, Pelasgians, Thracians, Phrygians, or
any other equivalent name, Greece was colonised, subsequently
to the Cyclopean period, by a people which gradually became
absorbed into two dominant families — the Achaic and Hellenic.

From whatever elements compounded, no race on the face
of the earth ever presented such an union between physical
and intellectual beauty as the classic Greeks, and much of
year 1516, when, ior the first time, they made themselves
rather conspicuous in Polish affairs. Their first alliance with
Russia was self-sought, and did not take place until the year
1654, at which time their effective military' force consisted of
about 40,000 men. From this period they remained faithful
to Russia until 1708, when, under their hetman, or leader,
Biilavine, they r went Over in a body to the Swedish monarch,
Charles XII. This independence of character was necessarily
prejudicial to Russia. The existence of a powerful armed
body, owning no immediate allegiance to the Muscovite rule,
was discovered to be so fatal to the interests of the latter, as
to necessitate the disorganisation of the Cossacks as a military
body. Accordingly* this was effected by Peter the Great,
who, however, shortly remodelled them on a new basis. Not
pleased with the consequences of this new measure, the
Cossacks threw up their semi-allegiance to the Czar, and com-
mitted themselves to the protection of the Khan of Crimea
Tartars. Difficult to please, the Cossacks soon became dis-
gusted with their hew masters, and sued pardon of Russia — a
pardon which was granted them by the Empress Anne. Ever
since the latter event, the Cossacks have remained faithful to
Russia, with which empire they r are now so incorporated by
social and religious ties, that they may be considered Russians
in all respects.

A far better specimen of humanity is the bossack's pictorial
neighbour, the Tyrolese, one of a small but noble-minded
race. The Tyrol, as it is nov called, forms part of the ancient
Rhaetia, and is . not quite double the size of Yorkshire. It is
a very mountainous country- — considerably" more mountainous
than Switzerland, although its mountains are not generally
so high. At least three-fourths of Switzerland is sufficiently
level to admit of plough cultivation, but scarcely one-tenth of
the Tyrol is similarly situated, every portion of the little ter-
ritory being a succession of mountain peaks, except a few
narrow belts scarcely half a mile wide, on the average, which
form the river banks. Unlike the Swiss, who are staunch
republicans, the Tyrolese entertain a fervent love of imperial
rule. They became incorporated with the Austrian empire
during the twelfth century, and ever since that period have
been sincerely attached to the Hapsburg dynasty. In 1S05,
Tyrol was ceded to Bavaria— an arrangement which so little
pleased the mountaineers, that four years later, on the breaking
out of war with France, the inhabitants rose at the instigation
of Andreas Hofer, the Tell of the Tyrol, as he is sometimes
called. Hofer's fate is too well known. Fruitless though
this insurrection was, in its immediate consequences, politicians
were taught that nothing but Austrian rule would ever satisfy
the Tyrolese ; accordingly, on the final adjustment of terri-
tory, in the year 1814, Tyrol was restored to the House of
Hapsburg.

The little fellow standing on the extreme left of our wood-
cut, is a Laplander, whose stunted form, the effect of cold, has
been faithfully represented by the artist. The denizen of an
inhospitable climate, and far removed from the noisy turmoil
of European politics, the Laplander engrosses but small atten-
tion. All that we can find time to say- of him is, that although
a denizen of Europe, he is not a Caucasian. The generality of
naturalists consider him of the Mongolian stock.